Warau Salesman New

Spoiler free review

I welcome feedback on my reviews

So you've finished another long hard day at work, and you're walking home so you can eat and rest. You've got this tiny problem that's been bugging you for the longest time, but since you're so busy with your day to day life, you just don't have the time or determination to solve it yourself. Suddenly, a short old man appears before you. He's wearing a three-piece suit, tie, and hat, and he has teeth the size of bricks. Smiling that massive grin of his, he hands you a business card that reads "Moguro Fukuzou. I will fill ... that hole in your heart..." He then proceeds to offer you the best deal you have ever heard in your life. He plans to help fix that problem that has been nagging you for an eternity. It's too good to be true... right?

Laughing Salesman New is pretty much that fun little story I just shared with you. Each ep is split into two 10-minute segments, each focusing on Fukuzou Moguro, the "Laughing Salesman," and his latest customer. It's an episodic show where we watch each client get exactly what they want... until Moguro takes it away and fucks them over hard. There's quite a mix of clients throughout the series, some deserve what they get while others were just trying to make their own life easier. It's an interesting premise that could be explored quite well, but Laughing Salesman kinda misses the mark.

There is not much to focus on for this anime. The animation is retro themed, (similar to Mr. Osomatsu) and there are only two recurring characters. (Moguro and the bartender of Ma no Ten, who just makes drinks in the background) The only thing that can really be looked into is how well it manages its episodic theme. Sadly, it's pretty hit and miss as you progress through the show. A lot of eps can feel too predictable, rushed or forced, slightly ruining the consequence Moguro unleashes onto his customers, while others give you the right amount of satisfaction to tickle your dark side as you watch each and every person fall to their demise. It's very hard for some people to stay invested in a show where you have no idea when you'll like the latest ep or not, but when the show gets it right, it really shines for just a little while.

Moguro himself is a great main character, as long as you don't mind the fact that he scams anyone and everyone. He has a way of making you like him, even though you know he's kind of an ass. His unique laugh, the way he talks and draws in his victims, and the ever-satisfying BOOOM that triggers their downfall, they all gather up to make Moguro such a fun character to watch. Of course, these traits only really shine during the really good eps, so others will definitely see him differently depending on how they enjoy the anime.

Laughing Salesman New provides us with a tease with its interesting premise and character, but it just fails to keep its consistency with its eps. Many people will enjoy it, but there are also many that will dislike the feel of the show. If you truly want to see how this unfolds and are willing to forgive it for its ups and downs, then I urge you to watch it and discover this rough little gem for yourself. But proceed with caution if you dislike the sort of stuff I have talked about, you're only gonna end up burning yourself. Another victim of the Laughing Salesman.

This one is a weird one to review. As I give it a 9 for enjoyment, but it's a lot of the same ways I like twilight zone, outer limits, or the good M Night Shyamalan movies, in that they have good twists, or endings.

Each episode is formulaic, there are two stories, each one introduces the person the story will follow, they bump into the laughing salesman, her offers them what they truly want, and it often goes bad, mostly through their own actions, by being too selfish, by breaking the rules, by ignoring the warnings.

What made me enjoy it is, the curiosity ... in how they will get their comeuppance, some b breaking the rules, others by getting what they want, but as often is in life, it isn't what they expected.

The animation and art is passable my main issue with it is, a lot of the characters start to look interchangeable, but doesn't ruin the over all feel of the show, just something I noticed.

This may not be for everyone, but if your interested in something in the light of twilight zone and such you might enjoy it.

Laughing Salesman is a pretty good show, easily watchable from beginning to end. If you are considering watching this, you can just go through one or two episodes and pretty much get the jist of it since the show has a static pattern.

What made this interesting to me was seeing how different characters approach Moguro's offers, and their particular weaknesses that cause them suffering. For a psychological show, its simple and easy to digest. The occasional exaggeration in the art adds to its comedic moments, and its eerie ones. The opening is also catchy and sets the mood pretty well.

It falls short because after ... time it becomes too predictable. The plot of each half-episode is fairly solid, but the formula easy to foretell and probably not very entertaining if you try watching it all at once. None of Moguro's customers ever outsmart him, end up better off, or solve their issues without some consequence. It's obvious Moguro specially chooses his targets because everyone he deals with is doomed to fail, but that doesn't really make for an entertaining narrative for weeks on end.

Overall, it's a 6/10. You could probably pass this and be no worse off, but at the very least Laughing Salesman is better than most would lead you to believe.

First ever review.

What would you do if you came across a man who states that he is a salesman and can help "fill the hole in your heart?" Would you take up his offer or deny it?

Story
Every episode is different but it follows the same sort of formula. Each episode has two parts which means it features two different characters with two different situations. So basically, character meets Moguro (the main character) and tells of their troubles. Moguro agrees to help but there is always some sort of catch. Character doesn't heed Moguro's warning and then BOOM!! they get punished for it.

I have to ... say that the premise is very interesting since it is essentially teaching that you will be punished if you get too greedy or don't follow the rules. I did have some problems with it. Because the anime follows this same formula, it does get predictable about what is going to happen. When I was watching, I was playing a game of "how can the character mess this up?" And when it was revealed of how they can they mess it up I start to play the game of "what is there punishment going to be?" There were times that I was able to predict what was going to happen but there were times when I wasn't expecting things to end up the way that they did.

Art
When I first saw the art in the anime, it gave me Osomatsu-san vibes. But after doing some research, it actually has more of a Doraemon feel because the person that created Doraemon also created the Laughing Salesman. (There is a fun fact for you in case you didn't know)

I love the whole pop of color that you get from watching the show. I also like the different patterns and textures that would appear at times like when Moguro is warning the character or when he is punishing them. It gives the feel of like something bad will happen. I also like the different designs of the various characters that appear in each episode. The character's designs help with signifying what type of person they are.

Character
Throughout the anime there are only two major characters: Moguro and the bartender at Ma no su. Moguro at first glance I would say looks creepy. I mean I would not blame the characters for being skeptical of him and freaking out when they first encounter him. Not only does he look creepy but he could act creepy as well.

Despite that I find him very interesting. That is all I could say. I mean I find it interesting how he goes out of his way to "help" these people. I also have to wonder why he does this sort of thing and how in the world he is able to do the things that he does. Is he some sort of supernatural thing? I don't know.

Regardless he is a very interesting character and the characters that he encounters in the anime are also interesting.

Enjoyment
Besides having the same formula for each episode, I would have to say that I enjoyed this anime in some way. Although there were times when I wished that the characters didn't mess up and they had some sort of happy ending. I mean I could only recall like only one episode where there was a some sort of happy ending. But most of the time the characters get punished and then it just ruins their lives. I watched a couple of episodes with my cousins and finished the rest by myself. During the times I watched it with my cousin we just kept thinking, "wow that was pretty messed up" or "okay they kind of deserved that." But whenever I watched the anime I would have to say I really enjoyed the opening theme. I never skipped the opening.

Now would I want to rewatch this anime if I had the chance, I don't think I will.

Now this anime I would say is not for everyone. People might get turned off by the art style or something but I would have to say, if you want to try out new things or just curious, check it out. Maybe you will enjoy it or not.

“All people in this world – old, young, man, woman – are lonely at heart. I will fill that emptiness in their hearts.”

This line is recited by the so called ‘laughing salesman’ himself at the beginning of the 24 sub-episodes in the series to remind us of the show’s premise. This premise being that there is always a cost that comes with human over-indulgence. Donning a black suit and a smug grin, the salesman approaches people with a ‘problem’ which he offers to solve in a manner which seems too good to be true. Although the salesman is truthful in his words and he does ... “fill the emptiness in their hearts”, they quickly find that there is an ironic catch to each deal.

The anime doesn’t seem to have any connections between the sub-episodes that would make up an overarching plot, meaning the series is entirely episodic and can theoretically be watched in any order. That being said, the sub-episodes are well self-contained, and they quickly set up an introduction and finish with a satisfying punchline in ~10 minutes. They begin by introducing a new protagonist each time and usually reveal some type of problem that they are experiencing. This leads to them meeting Mogoru Fukuzo, the laughing salesman, where he will then offer them a magical solution. He always warns them not to get carried away, but his customers always break their promise and learn a harsh lesson in the end. Despite the strict formula in the anime, it didn’t feel overly repetitive to me personally, although this will differ for each viewer.

Because the protagonist changes in each episode, there are too many to cover in one review. However, I felt like they were satisfying overall, and they each had enough of a backstory to set them apart and keep the show interesting. Not much is revealed about the salesman himself in order to keep him mysterious, but his outward design is memorable to say the least, and he has a shrewd and uncanny demeanour that is uncommon for main characters that make him stound out.

The animation is nothing to write home about, but it is satisfactory and does the job well. The appeal (to me at least) was more the art style, which is a replication of the manga’s creator, Fujiko Fujio’s, iconic style that everyone can recognise at a glance due to the popularity of his other more mainstream series such as Doraemon.

The sound is decent. The music is fitting and relatively well-placed, and the OP and ED are above both above average but nothing too special. Overall, the sound is pretty forgettable and not particularly noteworthy, but it does the job.

I found the series to be decently enjoyable. Some of the stories were fairly thought-provoking and there are some reasonable lessons about greed desire, while others were unfortunately on the superficial side. It’s not hugely philosophical or ‘deep’ (and it’s not exactly trying to be), but it’s meaningful enough to the extent where it is engaging without being overly pretentious.